London Olympics Come in £400m Under Budget

THE LONDON OLYMPICS cost nearly £400 million less than forecast before the Games, it was announced today.

In the run up to the summer sporting festivities, the figure estimated for the Olympics' budget was £9.3 billion, but the real-life figure has now been totted up as £8.9 billion, a saving of over four per cent.

"It is a significant achievement to deliver this large and complex program on time and under budget," said Hugh Robertson, Sports Minister.

"I have no doubt that London 2012 has set a new benchmark for the management of Olympic and Paralympic Games in the future."

The £400 million savings came mainly from the budgets for construction, transport and security, the latter despite the costly last-minute replacement of security company G4S by the army.

"The work of the construction and delivery teams, from the ODA (Olympic Delivery Authority) and Locog (London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games), has set a very high standard," added Robertson.